A PARISH council vice-chairman has been booted out of his post for "bickering and undermining the chairman" and asking too many questions at meetings.

Geoffrey Adams was given the thumbs down by Sonning Common Parish Council after his fellow

councillors claimed he made meetings too long.

They agreed a vote of no confidence in Mr Adams at a council meeting last month.

The vote was proposed by councillor Ann Dayton who claimed Mr Adams had "caused dissension within the council by bickering and undermining the chairman, wasting the council's time and giving a bad impression to members of the public that the council was always arguing".

Councillor Pat Hughes seconded the resolution and added that Mr Adams' continual questions made the meeting last for two hours instead of finishing in an hour.

Defending Mr Adams, Councillor Don Naish said he was amazed that such a resolution had been entered and had never heard such accusations of bickering being made.

He argued that a councillor's responsibility was to actually ask questions and councillors should be encouraged to do that.

Details of the row at the village hall on Monday, February 17, were recorded in the council's minutes, which also included the dictionary

definition of bickering as "bad-tempered arguing about unimportant matters".

Arthur Badcock, the council's clerk, said it was not the political but the general procedures of the meetings that were in question.

He said: "It's a bit unusual. Some people felt the meeting should finish earlier, the resolution was accepted and the vice-chairman had to leave."

Mr Naish, the longest serving member of the council, said: "I was taken aback by the motion because he was a person who always developed debates.

"He asked the right questions."

Mr Adams was voted out by a majority of seven of the 12 councillors present on the night.

The same evening, Jane Armitage, who chairs the council and who voted in favour of the resolution, decided to carry out new elections.